Fears of a Federal Government Shutdown

By Mike Soraghan and Manu Raju The Hill-Posted: 07/30/08 07:56 PM [ET] The prospect of a September government shutdown loomed over the Capitol on Wednesday as the two parties fought over rising energy prices. It’s a fight some members of either party are willing to have, but others worry about who will get blamed for a repeat of the 1995 shutdown that President Clinton pinned on a Republican Congress. Lawmakers and staff are starting to talk not just about how to avoid such a repeat, but also about who would gain and lose November election votes if it happened.